Journalist remanded in custody for involvement with Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Foundation

A Moscow Court has remanded SOTAvision journalist Antonina Favorskaya in custody for a further two months, Telegram channel Free Favorskaya
said
on Friday.

Favorskaya was charged with involvement in an extremist community for her supposed ties to slain opposition politician Alexey Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK), which the Russian authorities declared an extremist organisation in 2021.

The court hearing was held behind closed doors, independent media outlet SOTAvision
reported
. The investigator requested the session be held behind closed doors as some members of the FBK with whom Favorskaya is alleged to be involved are on the international wanted list.

Favorskaya pleaded
not guilty
to the charges against her and requested that the court place her under house arrest rather than in a pretrial detention centre. She also asked for her trial to be open to the public.

The Free Favorskaya group insists she has never been an FBK member and had simply covered the court cases against Navalny and the activities held to honour his memory after his death in February.

Favorskaya had been due for
release
from a special detention centre in Moscow on Wednesday, where she had been held for 10 days of administrative arrest for failing to obey orders from a police officer. She was originally detained on 17 March with two colleagues after laying flowers at Navalny’s grave.

Security forces
stopped
her as she left the special detention centre, escorted her home and searched both her home and that of her parents. She was then
taken
to Investigative Committee premises where she was questioned overnight and charged with involvement with an extremist community.